Small microplastics no longer slip through the cracks with novel method for detection

The exceptional properties of plastics, such as their chemical, light- and temperature-resistance, in combination with the low cost and ease of manufacturing have rendered them into one of the most popular and widely used materials over the last decades. The widespread use of plastics in everyday life has triggered an increasing global production, unfortunately also accompanied by a significant accumulation of plastic litter in the environment. In 2017, it was reported that approximately 6,300 million tons of plastic waste were generated between 1950 and 2015, around 5,000 million tons of which accumulated in landfills and the natural environment.

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